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No. 6|7,|80. Patented lan. 3, |899.l L. PEARCE.

MEANS F013 ALTERING GAGES 0F RAILWAY ROLLING STCK.

(Application iled Aug. 8, 1898.) N o M u d el.)

2 Sheets-fSheet I.

Patented lan. 3, H399.

L. PEARCE. MEANS FOR ALTERING GAGES 0F RAILWAY BOLLINGSTOCK.

(Appliaton l ed Aug. 8, 1898.)

24 Sheeis--Sheet 2.

(No Model.)

Zie ma/22 f mi nonms PETERS cn, PHOTO-nwo.. wAsr-xmumn, D. a

LOUIS PEARCE, OF FREMANTLE, WESTERN AUSTRALIA.

MEANS FOR ALTERING GAGES OF RAILWAY ROLLING-STOCK.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 617,180, dated January 3, 1899.

Application filed August 8, 1898.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LOUIS PEAROE, a subject of Her Majesty Queen Victoria, residing at Fremantle, in the Colony of Western Australia, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Means forAltering Gages of Railway Rolling-Stock; and I do hereby de clare the followingto bea full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention has been designed for. the purpose of providing means whereby the difiiculties incidental and relating to the various and different breaks of railway-gages may be overcome and so that the same rollingstock may be used on all lines, even though of a different gage.

By means of my invention rolling-stock may be quickly and easily altered for its transposition onto the altered gage-that is, when the train of carriages arrives at the termination of the railway-line of one gage the train maysubsequently proceed on its journey over the permanent way of another gage.

By the use of my invention it is clear and obvious that much trouble, time, and expense both to passengers and in the trans port of merchandise and live stock may be saved, especially on main transcontinental lines.

I carry out my invention by forming a screw'- thread on or in the axle and also forming the corresponding screw in the eye or boss of the wheel. Means are provided for securely retaining the wheels upon the axles in their correct and predetermined-upon positions, to obtain which result I employ distance-collars, which are usable and interchangeable from one side of the wheel to the other. WV hen the wheels are traveling on the narrow gage, the collars would be on the outside of the wheels, and when the latter are on the broad gage the collars would be upon the inside. Underneath the carriage-floor I suspend or hang hinged pawls, whose purpose is to hold or block the axle from revolving during the time that the wheels are being screwed outward or inward upon the axle. Upon the axle are formed ratchets with which these pawls engage. These pawls are employed so that in the event of the screws being stiff through any serial No. 688,039. 'da model.)

foreign obstruction getting into the grooves thereof the axle will be securely held. Another duty which these pawls perform is that in the event of the distance-collars becoming beyond what might be termed hand-tight the pawls would be used to hold the axle,while the wheel would be unscrewed sufficiently so as to give the necessary amount'of relief and so loosen the collar on its face area. I may use any pitch of screw or of any section; but by preference I use that of the V-section as having greater retentionsurface. The distance-collars before referred to are made of hinged sections, so that they can be taken off the axle for replacement on the other side of the wheel. l

This invention does not necessitate any alteration to the existing designs of rollingstock. Further, by its use no alteration is needed as regards the arrangement of the brake-gear, as the hanging bar which carries the brake-blocks may be made to slide along its own ordinary transverse bar.

In order that my invention may be clearly understood, reference may-now be made to the accompanying drawings, which illustrate same, and in which- Figure l is a sectional elevation showing the screw formation both upon the axle and in the eye of the wheel. In this view the distance-collars are removed for clearness sake. Fig. 2 represents an elevation of Fig. l. In these said iigures the wheels are shown on what is termed the broadgage,7 and sufficient of the railway-carriage is illustrated to show relationship-of the parts. Figs. 3 and 4 are views in elevation of the invention as usable on the standard and narrow gages, respectively, X X being the vertical center line of the railway.` In the latter views Vthe use of two distance-collars for each wheelis shown.

Fig. 5 shows the retention-serrations on the axle with operative pawl. Fig. 6 shows detail view of the distance-collars and axle.

In the drawings, A represents the railwayaxle, and in which the screw B is formed or cut in the ordinary manner, as by a lathe.

C is the inner and C2 the outer shoulder or collar, made one with the axle A. On the inner shoulder C are formed ratchet-shaped serrations, as C3, with which'the hinged pawl C4 en gages,for the purpose hereinbefore referred IOO to and as shown in Fig. 5. This pawl is hinged, as at C5, to the bracket C, which latter is suitably secured to the under frame, as C7, of the truck or carriage.

D is the distance-collar, which is made in two pieces and jointed together by the hinge D2 and provided with the lugs D3, through which pass the bolts D4 to screw up the collar, so as to secure it from opening when it acts as the distance-piece between the wheel and the fixed shoulders, as C or C2.

D5 represents the clearance-space between the bore of the collar and the screwed axle.

E is the wheel, the interior or bore of whose boss is formed with a screw-thread, which latter corresponds and fits onto the screw B as formed on the axle A.

F represents a portion of an ordirary railway carriage or truck which is provided with axle-boxes, as G, and brake-blocks, as J.

The distance-collars D would be constructed of the required standard widths to agree with the difference of the conflicting gages of the permanent way of the railway systems which would be traveled over.

The method of using my invention in order that wheels with their axles and attached carriages may be usable for different gages of railway-lines is as follows: The wheels E and axles A are constructed by having screws B formed, respectively, therein and thereon and fitted up as shown and described. Further, in order to effect the object of this invention it is necessary that a pit be constructed in such a position that the junction of the two lines of the confiicting gages would take place at about a central point of such pit. Such pit should be of sufficient depth to allow headroom for the person whose duty it would be to alter the gage of the wheels on their axles. Assume that the train of carriages is desired to be altered from the broad gage, as in Fig. l, to the narrow gage, as shown in Fig. 4. Upon each carriage of the train being run and placed over the pit by the engine the operator would then release the distance-collars D by unscrewing them at the bolts D4 and then place them so as to hang idly on the axle A, and after throwing the forked pawls C4 into engagement with the ratchets O3 the carriage would then be moved the distance and in the direction that would be requisite in order that the wheels E would travel or be screwed on their axle, as A, in an inward direction-that is, toward each other-until such time as they would arrive against the shoulder C and so assume their narrow-gage position on the axle A. The distance-collars D are thereupon placed and secured on the axle and at a position outside of the wheels. It may be added that upon the wheels arriving at their narrow-gage position on the axles they would concurrently arrive on the narrow gage of rail.

The method of altering the rolling-stock from a narrow to a broader gage is obviously a Vice-versa operation to that as above described.

It will thus be seen that the engine is the motive agent in altering the rolling-stock as it propels the carriage in either direction so as to effect the transposition of the wheels either outward or inward, so as to be usable on the broad ornarrow gage. The individual carriage retains its unity as regards and with the whole train during such alteration and is in no wise made separate therefrom.

Having fully described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. The combination of the screw-threaded axle, the wheel screwing thereon, means for normally locking the wheel and for leaving it free to turn on the axle when desired, aratchet rigid with the axle, and a pawl fulcrumed on the body of the vehicle and adapted to engage the ratchet.

2. The combination of the screw-threaded axle, the wheel screwing thereon, means for normally locking the wheel and for leaving it free to turn on the axle when desired, a ratchet rigid with the axle, and a pawl fulcrumed on the body of the vehicle and having a forked end embracing the ratchet to prevent rotation of the axle in either direction.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

LOUIS PEARCE.

Witnesses:

RICHD. SPARRow, FRED WALTHAM. 

